TOM’s Sensitization Team introduced a new and successful Ping-Pong activity to all students from grades 2-8 in order to raise awareness of inclusion prior to the event.

The team collaborated with Juan Felipe, a national champion in Paralympic table tennis throughout the activity, which took place on April 13-14. The objective of this activity is for students to compete against him and learn that individuals with disabilities should not be looked down on since they may be better or just as talented in many ways.

“Working with Juan Felipe has been wonderful, he has inspired us in many ways. The purpose of this activity is for students to see that this shouldn’t be something to be sorry for, but instead, something to admire and learn from, and I think he does an excellent job on that.” Sofia Gomez, member of the TOM Sensitization Team, said.

Typically, classes were separated into two groups. The first group was given a wheelchair to practice moving in different directions in a short span of time. In the meanwhile, the second group played off against Juan Felipe. The students in both groups were frequently startled by the difficulty of this because they had very little expectations for Juan Felipe and were afterward surprised by how challenging it was.

“I think what made this activity so successful in the end was seeing the students’ reactions. We were able to make everyone participate, and it was fun seeing how some students were so confident that they were going to win that they even lost bets at the end. I believe this is what truly changes people’s perspectives in these kinds of subjects,” Gomez said.

The fact that the team was able to notice a positive attitude and behavior among the students participating in the exercise was what made this activity so effective. Students, according to Gomez, were really polite and respectful in their comments. The team felt certain that they had done a good job because the kids were all familiar with inclusion and the phrases that should and should not be used around those who have disabilities.

“We felt really proud when we noticed a positive change in the attitude and behavior of the students. I think the TCS community overall does a very good job on that which brings us high expectations for the event,” Gómez said.

This effort has had a significant influence on the TCS community. The sensitization team has noticed a rise in engagement and interest in TOM, from the presentations to the ping-pong activities. Providing such a fun and participatory activity has sparked TCS students’ curiosity and love for persons with disabilities, which is a wonderful way to start off this year’s event.

“The ping pong activity really helped us achieve our goal of introducing the topic of disabilities, especially among the younger students. The idea was to raise awareness prior to the event and I believe we did an amazing job in that,” Gomez said.

The ping pong activity was originally planned and made possible by the leaders of this year’s sensitization team, Santiago Balladares and Pascual Cardozo. 

“Santiago and Pascual brought their idea and were able to successfully plan it and make it possible with the assistance of Pablo Arango and Maria Hinestroza. This year’s leaders are taking the event to another level.” Gomez said.

Because this year’s TOM event will be larger than ever, there will be groups of kids ranging from K4 to high school, as well as adults who are not involved with the school. The sensitization team has made sure that all need-knowers will be in a safe environment.

“It is really important to learn from people like Juan Felipe. He really inspires us to follow our dreams and passions no matter what we think is holding us back.” Gomez said.